Nonstop flight route between Grafton, New South Wales, Australia and Tonopah, Nevada, United States:

About this route:

A direct, nonstop flight between Clarence Valley Regional Airport (GFN), Grafton, New South Wales, Australia and Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD), Tonopah, Nevada, United States would travel a Great Circle distance of 7,452 miles (or 11,992 kilometers).

A Great Circle is the shortest distance between 2 points on a sphere. Because most world maps are flat (but the Earth is round), the route of the shortest distance between 2 points on the Earth will often appear curved when viewed on a flat map, especially for long distances. If you were to simply draw a straight line on a flat map and measure a very long distance, it would likely be much further than if you were to lay a string between those two points on a globe. Because of the large distance between Clarence Valley Regional Airport and Tonopah Test Range Airport, the route shown on this map most likely appears curved because of this reason.

Try it at home! Get a globe and tightly lay a string between Clarence Valley Regional Airport and Tonopah Test Range Airport. You'll see that it will travel the same route of the red line on this map!

Departure Airport Information:

Arrival Airport Information:

Facts about Clarence Valley Regional Airport (GFN):

• The furthest airport from Clarence Valley Regional Airport (GFN) is Santa Maria Airport (SMA), which is located 11,928 miles (19,196 kilometers) away in Santa Maria, Portugal.
• Because of Clarence Valley Regional Airport's relatively low elevation of 110 feet, planes can take off or land at Clarence Valley Regional Airport at a lower air speed than at airports located at a higher elevation. This is because the air density is higher closer to sea level than it would otherwise be at higher elevations.
• The closest airport to Clarence Valley Regional Airport (GFN) is Coffs Harbour Airport (CFS), which is located 39 miles (63 kilometers) S of GFN.
• Clarence Valley Regional Airport (GFN) currently has only 1 runway.

Facts about Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD):

• In 2006, the Constant Peg program was declassified and the USAF held a series of press conferences about the former top secret US MiGs.
• On 17 May 1982, the move of the 4450th TG from Groom Lake to Tonopah was initiated, with the final components of the move completed in early 1983.
• Several locations were considered, Michael Army Airfield at the Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah, and the Gila Bend Air Force Auxiliary Field on the Goldwater Range in Arizona.
• Foreign military sales of United States fighter aircraft to Indonesia and Egypt in the mid-1970s to replace the Soviet fighter aircraft allowed these nations to clandestinely transfer un-needed MiG-21 ultra modern MiG-23s aircraft to the United States for evaluation.
• The furthest airport from Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Pierrefonds Airport (ZSE), which is located 11,207 miles (18,036 kilometers) away in Saint-Pierre, Réunion.
• The closest airport to Tonopah Test Range Airport (XSD) is Tonopah Airport (TPH), which is located 25 miles (40 kilometers) NW of XSD.
• None of the Soviet-designed aircraft at Tonopah flew in bad weather or at night.
• Tonopah is owned by the USAF Air Combat Command.
• The MiG-21 posed a major threat to Israeli Air Defenses as well as to American pilots over the skies of North Vietnam.
• On 12 August 1968, the IDF obtained two Syrian Air Force MiG-17F fighters that had gotten lost during a training flight and landed inadvertently at Besert Landing Field, Israel.